BHUBANESWAR: The Capital Region Urban Transport (CRUT) authorities have finalised nine routes in the first phase for technology-driven and citizen-friendly ‘Mo bus’ service scheduled to be launched here on Tuesday ahead of Odisha Men’s Hockey World Cup 2018.
Officials of the CRUT, a special purpose vehicle (SPV) formed for public transport in the Capital, said route no. 20 to 28 will be covered in the first phase of ‘Mo Bus’ service. Route no. 20 connects Master Canteen Terminal with Khurda New Bus Stand via Vani Vihar while route no. 21 interlinks both places via Odisha University of Agriculture Technology (OUAT).
Similarly, route no. 22 connects Master Canteen Terminal with Khurda New Bus Stand via Jatni, route no. 23 links Master Canteen Terminal with SUM Hospital and route no. 24 covers Kalinga Vihar and Tankapani Sai Temple.
This apart, route no. 25 from Dumduma to Mancheswar, route no. 26 from Dumduma to Chakeisiani, route no. 27 from Master Canteen Terminal to AIIMS near Sijua and route no. 28 from Master Canteen Terminal to Kalinga Nagar will be covered under ‘Mo Bus’ phase-I, officials added.
The CRUT has planned to introduce the smart bus service in nine other routes covering route no. 10 to 18 from November 15. In this phase, the bus service will cover routes from Biju Patnaik International Airport to Badambadi Square, Master Canteen Terminal to Biju Patnaik Park, Cuttack and Sikharchandi to Lingaraj Temple among others. The ‘Mo Bus’ Phase-III Network is likely to be launched on December 10, they said.
The urban transport authorities have decided to launch the smart bus service along with a mobile app. The ‘Mo Bus’ app will be available both in Android and iOS operating systems and a desktop variant to track the vehicles and locations of bus queue shelters.
The CRUT has already received 125 buses while another 75 will join the fleet shortly. The new buses are being inducted under the ambitious Bhubaneswar City Bus Modernisation Plan (BCBMP).